


Boss for auction

by twin_fics



Category: Arashi (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Romance Novel, M/M, Romantic Comedy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-01-10
Updated: 2012-01-10
Packaged: 2017-10-29 08:17:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/317726
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twin_fics/pseuds/twin_fics
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>Finally</i>, he had done it. He had bought <i>his boss</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unbetaed. Non-english speaker

“I’ve told her uncountable times that I don’t need her help to search for a soulmate, but she never pays me any attention!” the short secretary complained to his best friend. With a frown, he sipped his remaining coffee and crushed the paper cup. “You wouldn’t believe the disastrous dates she has arranged for me in the past,” he commented, throwing the paper cup to the nearest trash bin.

“But maybe this time she has found the right person,” his tall friend replied with an encouraging smile. Aiba was a bubbly, optimistic man, who always looked on the bright side of everything.

Nino shook his head, “That’s what I first thought when she began her crazy matchmaking plan years ago, but after meeting some of their choices I’ve lost my faith in her good taste.” He shivered, recalling his painful experiences with some of his mother’s arranged dates.

“But-,”

“So here is where you were hiding,” a deep, melodious voice interrupted Aiba’s reply.

It was _him_. Short stature; slender body enhanced by the elegant grey suit he was dressed in; dark hair carelessly combed, making him look more like a handsome pirate than a first-rate executive that belonged to the company’s elite; sleepy, almond-shaped, brown eyes and that smirk; that infuriating, knowing-it-all smirk. Nino wanted nothing more than to erase it from his chubby face – whether it was with a punch or with a kiss Nino wasn’t sure, but lately he had been in favour of doing it with a punch. A hard, _painful_ punch.

“Hello, Boss,” sighed Nino without bothering to hide his annoyance.

Hearing his secretary’s irritated greeting, his boss raised an eyebrow in a mocking expression, his smirk getting even more pronounced than before.

Nino’s heart beat faster. Why did he have to be so infatuated with his irritating boss? He asked himself the same question everyday, but the truth was that he was unable to get the man out of his mind, whether he was working or enjoying his free time.

“Good morning, Ohno-san,” chirped Aiba, bowing his head.

Ohno nodded, acknowledging Aiba’s greetings and returned his attention towards his short, bothered secretary. “I need you to type some letters out for me,” he said. “ _Today_ , if you don’t mind,” he added mockingly. “Believe it or not, Ninomiya, working hours at the office are meant for working, not for discussing some silly family problems that have an easy solution.”

“Yes? And what that easy solution is, oh almighty Boss?” replied Nino, voice laced with sarcasm.

“Easy,” responded his boss, “you just have to hire someone to accompany you to your next family reunion and present that person as your lover.” The older man rolled his eyes up, “Ahh, and I thought you were smarter,” he sighed, faking disappointment.

Fuming, Nino scowled at him, but his boss just grinned back and left them, walking towards the elevator’s gates. When the doors were about to close, the elegant man added, as if he had just remembered something, “And don’t forget to go to the dry cleaners to pick up my shirt!”

Nino shot the closed doors a venomous glare. “As if he would let me forget it. That and the damned Christmas party,” he grumbled. “Everyday, he insists on that I should attend the company’s Christmas party. ‘You never socialize with your fellow workers, so this party is your best opportunity to change that,’ ” Nino singsonged, imitating his boss’s voice.

“But it’s going to be so much fun!” exclaimed Aiba, with starry eyes - Nino had forgotten that his friend belonged to the party committee. “This year’s main attraction is the auction! We are going to auction ‘service tickets’ from the workers of the company. Even the bosses are going to participate!”

“ ‘Service tickets’?” asked Nino, looking confused at his friend, “What’s that?”

“It was an idea from Human Resources to spice the party a bit and collect some money for charity, you know?” explained Aiba. “They decided that it would be great if some workers could offer themselves as a symbolic token in the auction. The executives of the company were the first ones to be appointed as participants, of course.”

“Hmmmm,” Nino rubbed his chin pensively, an evil plan taking form in his mind, “and you say that the bosses are going to auction their services? Even my boss?”

“Yep!”

“That would be funny indeed,” he grinned wickedly, “What if I buy my boss’s services? Eh? Didn’t he say that my problem had an easy solution? What if _he_ is the one who accompanies me to my family reunion as my lover? I bet he won’t be as pleased with himself as he is now.”

The short secretary rubbed his hands, laughing maniacally . Now he was really looking forward to attend that damned party.  



	2. Chapter 2

  
_[The night of the party]_

  
Nino, dressed in his best suit, entered the reception room where the Christmas party was being held. The magnificent room, full of elegantly dressed people, was tastefully decorated in gold and silver. Carols played by a little orchestra sounded merrily in the background. At the end of the room, there was a big stage with a red curtain hiding the backstage where presumably the auction was going to take place. At both sides of the room, there were large tables bursting with delicious-looking canapés and the waiters hired for the occasion were doing their best to make sure that everybody had a drink. 

He looked around him, searching for his friend Aiba, who had promised to meet him at the entrance of the party. “I wonder were that air-head is,” he grumbled, approaching the buffet and biting one of the delicious canapés.

“I’m so _happy_ you have finally decided to follow my suggestion and attend the party,” he heard a mocking voice gloating behind him.

Nino almost chocked with his canapé. He swallowed with difficulty, between coughs, while someone patted his back helpfully. “And here I was, thinking that I could come to the party and enjoy myself without having to meet you,” replied Nino, turning around to face his boss and bracing himself against his infuriating presence.

The shorter man looked stunning, dressed in a stylish tuxedo that made him look slender and even more handsome than ever, if that was possible. Nino felt his mouth watering; his boss looked as deliciously edible as the little canapés situated on the table behind him. 

“Liar,” his boss laughed with a mischievous wink, oozing charm and confidence. “You should get a glass of champagne,” he said, sipping his own champagne slowly. “Do you want my help to find your way through the party?” he asked a moment later, as if he was worried about Nino’s lack of social finesse.

“No, thank you,” replied Nino through gritted teeth, trying to calm his fast-beating heart, “I think I’ll be able manage by myself.”

“Suit yourself,” easily replied his boss, nodding, “See you later.” With those words, the irritating man left Nino behind, walking through the crowd to meet some of his friends.

“Don’t doubt it for a moment,” murmured Nino under his breath, shooting a scorching glare at the back of the retreating man. Oh, God, he was going to enjoy so much buying him.

“Hey, Nino!” Suddenly, Aiba appeared at his side, accompanied by Jun. “Are you enjoying the party?”  
“Yeah,” replied Nino, “and I think I’m going to enjoy it even more when the auction began.” He smiled evilly, taking another canapé.

  
~~

  
“Thrice! Sold to the beautiful woman in the silver dress!” the auctioneer shouted, hitting with his small mace the piece of wood on the table.

“Now, I want you to greet our next article with a big applause. The boss of the marketing department, Ohno Satoshi!” the crowd cheered. “During the next week, he offers to do whatever the person who buys him wants. With the exception of something illegal or immoral, of course,” the auctioneer joked with the enthusiastic crowd. “The bid will start at 50 dollars… Any bids?”

“50 dollars!” a woman elegantly dressed in red shouted.

“55!” another one yelled, raising impatiently her hand.

“55 dollars, does someone offers more?” the auctioneer yelled.

“65!” other voice, this time male, shouted in the back of the room.

“70!” yelled Nino, gaining the astonished looks of his friends.

“The young man near the buffet offers 70 dollars, any more bids?” the auctioneer shouted, observing the crowd with attention. “Going once…”

“Are you going to auction for your own boss? Are you crazy?” asked Jun, incredulous.

“Be quiet!” hissed Nino, trying to follow the bid. Damn! Someone had surpassed his bid. “90!” he shouted, raising his hand.

On the stage, his boss just smiled beatifically.

“100!” the woman in the red dress shouted again.

Nino grimaced, the bid was getting too high for his own taste… maybe he should forget everything about it…

And then his boss winked at him and _smirked_.

“200 dollars!” shouted Nino with his blood boiling. He wasn’t going to let this opportunity slip through his fingers. No way!

“200 dollars! Someone has offered 200 dollars… More bids?… No?... Going once… twice...”

Nino gulped, hoping that nobody surpassed his bid this time.

“Thrice! Sold to the young man in the grey suit close to the buffet table!” the auctioneer shouted to Nino’s infinite relief, hitting the table and declaring the auction for his boss finalized. 

“You did it!” Aiba congratulated him, jumping excitedly while he held Nino’s trembling hands. “You bought your boss!” 

When he calmed himself a bit and released Nino’s hands, the tall man read interested the list of articles that hadn’t been auctioned yet. “Maybe I should follow your example and buy Sakurai’s services?” he commented.

“You are going to do _what_?” Jun exclaimed, astonished.

Nino didn’t pay any attention to his friends, who were discussing Aiba’s plans behind him.

 _Finally_ , he had done it. He had bought _his boss_.

Nino breathed deeply, trying to calm the rush of adrenaline that made his heart beat like crazy and his hands sweat profusely. Fixing his eyes on the corner of the stage where his boss was waiting for his buyer to reclaim him, Nino slowly led his steps towards him.

“Wow, Ninomiya. I didn’t know you wanted me so much that you would agree to pay 200 dollars for me~,” the infuriating man declared as soon as Nino reached his side, fluttering his eyelashes flirtatiously. “So, _master_ , what are your commands?” his boss asked mockingly, with a slight bow and a hand crossed through his chest as if he were a genie out of a fairy tale.  


“Oh, don’t worry. It‘s an easy task,” rejoiced Nino. “Do you remember my easy-to-solve problem from days ago? Well, I want _you_ to accompany me to my family reunion and pose as my _lover_ ,” he added smiling broadly, savouring the words.    



	3. Chapter 3

_[That night, in Nino’s house]_

“And how should I call you? Wouldn’t it be more credible if we use more affectionate names than our surnames?” asked Ohno, hours later, pensively poking his cheek with the ball-point pen he was holding.

Nino looked at him out of the corner of his eye, trying not to ogle the older man. His boss had left his jacket and his bow tie somewhere around the room and was now reading the life report that Nino had written for him; his sleeves rolled up and the collar of his immaculate white shirt opened, showing the tantalizing, tanned skin that was hidden under it.

To tell the truth, Nino would have never guessed that his boss would take his request so seriously, but the man had surprised him accepting the proposal without complaints. He had even gone so far as to propose preparing a life report about each other to make their act more credible.

“I thought you would be more surprised by my request and would take this worse,” Nino couldn’t help but comment.

Ohno shot him a knowing glance, “I guessed your intentions from the very beginning. You’re so transparent! Why would you accept to pay so much money for me if you didn’t plan to embarrass me?”

Blushing, Nino ducked his head, feeling a bit guilty. Although it was technically true that the first thing he had had in mind when he had bought his boss was taking revenge on him and forcing him to accept a ridiculous request, he couldn’t deny that the thought of ‘possessing’ his boss made his heart beat faster and his mind go wild with the infinite possibilities.

“However, you should know by now that when I start a project I try my best to do it perfectly,” his boss stated, interrupting his guilty thoughts. “So, how should I call you?”

“K-Kazunari?” the young man stuttered.

“I think ‘Kazu’ is much more intimate,” his boss affirmed with a toothy smile, charming and infuriating at the same time. “So I’ll call you ‘Kazu’. How are _you_ going to call _me_?”

Nino frowned. Clearly, his evil plan wasn’t working as well as he had expected because right now, the most embarrassed wasn’t his boss but him!

“ ‘Darling’?” Nino proposed mockingly, trying to get even.

“Well, that’s your choice,” replied Ohno, shrugging his shoulders, “but I don’t think your family is going to swallow our little lie so easily if you don’t take it seriously yourself.” With those words, his boss shot him a reproachful gaze, pouting slightly.

“O.k., o.k.,” surrendered Nino raising his hands to placate him. “What about ‘Oh-chan’?”

“ ‘Oh-chan’…” repeated his boss, “It has a nice ring to it. O.k., it’s decided! You’ll be ‘Kazu’ and I’ll be ‘Oh-chan’!” he beamed at his secretary as if they had finished one of their project’s deadlines just in time.

Nino’s heart skipped a beat. “R-Right, I-I’m going to prepare some coffee, do you want a cup?” he stuttered, standing up hurriedly to try to hide his increasingly red cheeks.

“O.k.,” yawned his boss, making himself comfortable on the couch. Then, he took his report and distractedly began to go over it again.

Nino left the room as fast as he could without looking too desperate. After ten minutes, when his heart rate normalized and his cheeks didn’t burn him to the touch, the younger man returned to the living room, carrying two cups of coffee and some snacks on a tray.

He found his boss spread on the couch, snoring softly, the report he was reading forgotten on the floor.

“He must be really tired,” murmured Nino, quietly placing the tray on the coffee table, “but I suppose anyone would be exhausted if they had a business travel the same day of the Christmas party.”

Debating between waking him up or not, Nino finally decided to let the worn-out man sleep on the couch peacefully. After leaving the tray in the kitchen, he took a blanket out of the closet and put it on his boss, who sighed and tossed over to find a more comfortable posture on the small couch.

“Good night, Oh-chan” murmured Nino, turning off the lights of the room and closing the door of his bedroom behind him.

~~

Early the next morning, when Nino entered the living room he found the couch empty and the blanket neatly folded on the coffee table. There was a small note on the blanket.

_“I went to my home to pack some things for the trip but don’t worry, I’ll come back soon with a delicious breakfast! ^___~_

_Oh-chan”_

Nino finished reading the small note with a smile on his lips. When he wanted, his boss could be so cute…

The loud bell of the door snapped him out of his daydreaming and he ran to open it before the noise could wake up his neighbours.

In front of him, dressed casually in worn-out jeans and a black polo shirt, Ohno was waiting, precariously holding a small, leather bag and a plastic tray with two coffee cups and a paper bag.

“Hi,” the older man greeted him; entering the room without paying attention to Nino’s shocked face. “I’ve brought breakfast, as I promised!” he exclaimed, pointing the coffee cups and raising the paper bag.

“Hi,” Nino greeted him, still trying to overcome the shock of seeing his boss dressed informally. Walking slowly, he approached the couch while Ohno laid the table as confident as if he were in his own home. “I’ve bought you melon pan,” his boss commented, taking the pastries out of the paper bag. “It's your favourite, isn't it?”

“How do you know that?” asked Nino, puzzled.

“That’s a secret,” Ohno winked mischievously at him and Nino couldn’t get any information out of him no matter how hard he tried.  



	4. Chapter 4

  
“Are you ready,” Nino asked his boss, ready to push the bell of his parents’ home.

“It can’t be worse than making a presentation of a project to some reluctant client, right?” Ohno replied with one of his famous smirks.

“I hope so,” gulped Nino, pushing the bell.

A moment later, the door opened and Nino’s mother greeted them with a big smile. “Kazu! You have arrived sooner than I expected,” she exclaimed, hugging his son affectionately. “And who is this man?” she asked, her eyes full of curiosity, looking at Ohno.

“I’m Kazu’s boyfriend,” his boss replied confidently, putting his arm around Nino’s waist possessively before the stunned secretary was able to say anything. “My name is Ohno Satoshi, glad to meet you,” he added, holding out his free hand to Nino’s mother.

To say that Nino’s family was surprised would be an understandment.

~~

“I’m really sorry about this,” Nino apologized to his boss for the umpteenth time, looking anxiously around him. Currently, they were in their assigned bedroom; a small room with a _small_ , single bed in a corner and nothing more, no couch, no armchair, no nothing. “I thought they would complain a bit, but I didn’t expect them to be so distrustful,” he added, flushed.

Ohno just shrugged his shoulders, dropping his small bag on the floor, “I don’t really mind.” The older man approached the bed, testing the firmness of the mattress. “Although it’s small, the bed looks comfortable enough,” he commented, sitting on it.

Immediately, the spring mattress protested loudly, making Nino blush furiously in embarrassment.

“Hmmm, it looks like your family wants to follow our movements… closely,” his boss commented with a smirk. He bounced on the bed, laughing like a child when he heard the ruckus the spring mattress made.

Nino got even redder, unable to find the funny side of their current situation. He was about to say something when the following words of his boss stopped him right on his tracks.

“Should we offer them a _‘special performance’_ to show them our appreciation?” the short man said, fixing his gaze on Nino and wriggling his eyebrows lasciviously.

Nino’s jaw dropped to the floor. “You must be joking!” he exclaimed, eyes wide and face redder than it had ever been in his whole life. His poor heart was beating so fast that it couldn’t be healthy. At this rate he was sure that he was going to suffer a heart attack soon.

His boss just winked mischievously at him, making him even more anxious. _Maybe his boss wasn’t joking?_ Nino gulped with difficulty. 

“I’m going to sleep on the floor!” he hissed, keeping his voice low trying not to alert his family.

“Tsk tsk, spoilsport…” complained his boss, sticking his tongue out at him childishly.

How could his boss act so calm, even delighted with the entire situation? Shouldn’t _Nino_ be the one who should be currently laughing at the other man? Wasn’t this embarrassing situation _his_ long awaited revenge?

Fed up with his boss’ irritating behaviour, Nino turned around and began to prepare his provisional bed, gathering some spare blankets and pillows from the wardrobe – thank goodness his distrustful mother had forgotten to take those away with her when she had prepared their room.

 _“Tomorrow, we’ll see who is the one who gets embarrassed. You’re not going to take me by surprise anymore. At the end, I’ll be the last to laugh!”_ he promised himself, kicking vengefully his pillow.  



	5. Chapter 5

  
_[Next morning]_

A short series of loud knocks against the door made Nino regain his consciousness with a startle. He frowned, still half-asleep, bothered by the irritating noise that had forced him to wake up. He wanted to remain in the comfortable warmth that surrounded him a bit longer.

Suddenly, the door opened and his sister burst into the room with a gleeful smile. “I caught you!” she loudly exclaimed, pointing at the small bed triumphantly.

“You caught what?” asked Nino groggily, starting to sit up. Instantly, the slender hand resting on his waist tightened his grip on him, forcing his body to stay where he was: _absolute and completely_ squeezed against the firm body of his boss!

The sleep-induced fog that clouded Nino’s mind cleared in an instant.

“Argh, so loud…” protested the older man behind him, his hot breath tickling Nino’s neck and making the heart of his poor secretary beat like crazy. “Why is it so loud this early in the morning?” he whined, burying his face in the crook of Nino’s neck.

The smile on Nino’s sister face wavered, her eyes widening in surprise. “I-I was so sure that I was going to find one of you sleeping on the floor…” she voiced her thoughts aloud without noticing it.

Ohno raised his head, looking over Nino’s shoulder at the intruder. “Why should we? This bed is just _perfect_ for us,” he purred, clutching the bewildered secretary possessively.

“Erm… yeah… right,” the woman stuttered, her cheeks reddening, “Breakfast would be ready in twenty minutes!” After shouting those words, she rushed out of room, loudly closing the door behind her.

“Hahaha! That was so funny!” roared Ohno a second later, clutching his stomach and rolling from side to side over the bed.

Nino was speechless. Why was he on the bed, _sharing_ it with his boss? When did _that_ happen? And how?

“I… you… how…” he tried to elaborate a coherent phrase, his eyes darting frantically between the corner where his provisional bed had been placed last night and Ohno’s laughing face.

“Aren’t you happy that I moved you during the night?” his boss asked, drying his tears and trying to get his breath back.

“You moved me during the night? Why?” asked Nino, puzzled.

“Well, the main reason was that you looked really pitiful curled up in those blankets.”

Nino shot him an incredulous gaze.

“It’s true!” his boss protested, “I saw you shivering!”

“I don’t believe it for a moment!” Nino replied back, glaring at him.

“I felt lonely?” provided Ohno, fluttering his eyelashes innocently. “O.k., o.k.” the infuriating man raised his hands to placate his angry secretary when the latter growled murderously, ready to strangle him. “Yesterday, when I saw you making your bed, it bugged me that there seemed to be too many spare blankets and pillows in the wardrobe. Clearly, something was going on; and I was right on the spot as your sister’s sudden appearance this morning has proved,” he explained with a smug smirk.

Nino looked guiltily at the closed wardrobe. He had fallen into his family’s trap without suspecting a thing.

“So, I decided to prevent our little bluff from being discovered. I even put away the pillows and blankets you had used to hide all traces!” his boss added. “Wasn’t I clever?” he asked beaming at him, as if he was expecting Nino to praise him.

“Yeah, right. Thanks, I suppose,” Nino conceded grudgingly, averting his eyes. Now that things had calmed a bit, he was able to receive the whole impact of his boss’ morning look - naked chest, mussed hair and complacent smile. It simply was too much for him. 

His boss smiled brightly, not noticing Nino’s sudden shyness, and proceeded to stretch himself like a cat waking up from its afternoon nap. “Well, I suppose we should get ready for breakfast before they decide to start without us. Do you want to use the bathroom first?” he asked Nino, scratching his tanned chest lazily.  

Nino didn’t utter a word and hurriedly gathered his things, fleeing to the relative safety of the bathroom like a bat out from hell.  
 


	6. Chapter 6

“This is so good!” exclaimed his boss, stuffing his mouth with another spoon of food.

“Do you want seconds?” Nino’s mother asked him animatedly.

“Yes, please!”

It was incredible how easily Ohno had won over the women of his family, thought Nino bitterly. The other man had only needed to shoot at them one of his toothy smiles and appreciate their food exuberantly and they were eating on his palm already. He grimaced, hearing them giggle like high-schoolers after Ohno’s enthusiastic ‘Delicious!’

“Take a bite, Kazu!”

Suddenly a spoon of food appeared in front of him. He glared at his boss. “No, thank you,” he declined the food through his gritted teeth, earning his mother’s disapproving frown. The spoon, however, remained in front of him, poking his pressed lips playfully. “But you need to eat,” he heard his boss complain. “You’ve only eaten half of your plate… Ah! I know what’s wrong! You miss my cha-han, don’t you?” the older man exclaimed triumphantly.

What cha-han?! He had never tried his boss’ cooking! Hell, before reading his boss’ life report, he didn’t even know that the other man could cook!

Nino opened his mouth to protest and Ohno took the opportunity to put the spoon in his mouth. “It’s so good, right?” the older man chirped infuriatingly. “Ah! You have a bit of rice on your cheek,” he exclaimed, taking the grain and putting it in his own mouth.

Nino blushed and he got even redder when his mother commented with a smile, “You’re so cute together.” 

This was getting ridiculous! Wasn’t he the one who was going to embarrass his boss? What had happened with last night resolution and his great plans? Until that moment, the only thing he had achieved was to blush in embarrassment each minute… That and enjoying being hold by his strong arms, pressed against his almost naked body, reminded him an annoying voice inside his head. Yeah, that too, conceded Nino grumpily.

Suddenly, he noticed a hand with long, slender fingers cupping his cheek softly. Surprised, he focused his eyes again, snapping out of his reverie, and found Ohno’s face only a few centimetres away from his own face. “W-what are you doing!?” he yelped, jolting away and quickly standing up.

“Tsk tsk, Kazu. You weren’t paying attention to the conversation?” his boss mocked him, getting closer again and putting his free hand around Nino’s waist to prevent him from fleeing.

Nino shook his head confused, unable to avert his gaze from Ohno’s mischievous eyes. Why was his boss smiling as if he were the cat that got the cream? What the hell had he missed when he was lost in his thoughts?!

“In short, your relatives have asked for a proof of our undying love and I’ve accepted the challenge, promising them that we would show them a kiss like no other,” the bright, broad smile on his boss’ face could have rivalled with the sun… except for its frightening, shark-ish quality, of course.

Nino couldn’t even utter a word of protest before his boss pressed their lips together, moving the hand that had been softly cupping the younger’s man cheek to the back of his head to deepen the kiss hungrily. Overwhelmed, Nino couldn’t prevent his eyes from closing, melting against his boss’ firm body and feeling his heart hammering in his chest as if he were running a race, _a really long race_. Feeling his surrender, Ohno smiled, satisfied, and moved his lips expertly, making Nino let out a loud moan of pleasure. Instantly, the older man took advantage of Nino’s separated lips and made his tongue known inside the younger man’s mouth while he pressed the softer body against his own slender body.

The kiss seemed to last an eternity.

When his boss finally let Nino go, the young man was out of breath, redder than he had ever been in his life. The secretary panted, trying with difficulty to get his breath back. When he staggered dizzily, moving away from his boss, the older man extended a hand to catch him, steadying the dazed man securely pressed against his body.

“Well?” Ohno asked their audience without bothering to conceal his smugness.

“What I wouldn’t give to receive a kiss like that,” suspired Nino’s cousin dreamily, shooting a reproachful glance at her boyfriend.  

“I think I can say without trace of doubt that you have passed our challenge with flying colours,” commented Nino’s mother, fanning herself.

~~

Nino turned over in his provisional bed, wrapping the blanket around him more tightly. It was so damn cold! The few blankets his mother had left in the wardrobe, now that they didn’t suspect them anymore, weren’t enough to counteract the coldness of the room. Trying to stop his teeth from chattering, he scowled furiously at his boss, who was peacefully sleeping in the bed. How could he be so comfortable sleeping only in his boxers?

And why was he so bugged by how easily had his boss accepted his decision to sleep in the provisional bed now that his family didn’t suspect them anymore?  
‘If you change your mind, I will be here, in this comfortable bed, waiting faithfully for you with open arms,’ the infuriating man had declared, trying to pull a serious face and failing miserably.

Damn his boss and damn his failed plan of revenge!

 _“Perhaps it’s time you forget about your revenge,”_ the voice in his mind suggested, _“and you should return to the bed before you catch a cold on this cold and uncomfortable floor.”_

Why the annoying voice in his mind started to resemble his boss so much?

Nino frowned fiercely, stubbornly refusing to follow the voice’s advice. However, he had to surrender an hour later, his body shivering uncontrollably and his teeth chattering louder than a machine gun.

He got up and approached the bed stealthy. Ohno was snoring softly, taking up one side of the bed. Fortunately, there was enough space for Nino to enter the bed without being noticed. _“Maybe tomorrow I could get up early enough for him to notice my presence here,”_ hoped Nino, exhaling a satisfied sigh when the warmth of the bed started to warm his frozen limbs.

“I’m so _glad_ you finally decided to come to the bed,” he heard Ohno’s voice purr sweetly behind him.

Damn! Clearly, he had hoped too much.

“I was cold,” the secretary replied sourly, his face reddening with embarrassment.

“Don’t worry; I will warm you up in no time,” commented his boss, pressing his warm body against Nino and wrapping his arms around the trembling body of his secretary, “after all, what would happen with my reputation of being a gentleman if I let my boyfriend catch a cold when he is sharing the room with me?”

“ _You_ could have slept on the floor!” retorted Nino bitterly.  
   
“Kazu, I said my reputation of being a ‘gentleman’, not an ‘idiot’,” chuckled his boss behind him.

Then, he yawned, rubbing his nose affectionately against Nino’s nape and promptly fell asleep.

 _“Things didn’t go so bad, did they?”_ the voice in his mind commented merrily.

 _“Oh, shut up!”_ replied Nino, tired of fighting against his boss, the annoying voice and his true feelings.

He deliberately pressed his body against his boss’, turning over in his embrace to face the chubby face of the sleeping man, and hugged him back until there was no space between their bodies. He glanced at the older man to measure his reaction, but Ohno just tightened his hold on Nino’s body and kept snoring softly. Nino let out a sigh of relief, finally relaxing, and rested his head on his boss’ shoulder.

From now on, if he wasn’t going to get his revenge, he was sure as hell that he was going to enjoy the remaining time he had with Ohno posing as his lover. After all, who knew what will happen when they returned home and there was no need to pretend anymore?  



	7. Chapter 7

  
“So, you are in love with him!” exclaimed triumphantly Aiba. “I knew it! You were too interested in your boss to be a simple revenge!”

Nino scowled at him.

“Did you tell him your feelings?” asked Jun with interest.

Nino shook his head vehemently, “I’m sure that he would reject me and I would never survive to the embarrassment.”

“But didn’t you say that _he_ was really affectionate when you were in your parents’ home?” Aiba asked him, frowning, “Maybe he feels the same.”

“And wasn’t he the one who kissed you first, not caring about your audience? You told us that he kept acting really touchy even when there was no need to convince your family anymore,” added Jun, raising an eyebrow ironically.

“Maybe he just was horny?” provided Nino, shrugging his shoulders.

“Well, you’ll never know if you don’t ask… and if things go wrong, you can always search for another job,” commented Jun, tired of Nino’s constant whining.

“Gee, thanks Jun, you really know how to encourage someone!” grimaced Nino. “O.k., o.k.,” he finally surrendered, “Tomorrow, when he return from his business travel, I’ll talk with him.”

“Good,” Aiba smiled, happy to have finally succeeded in knocking some sense into his younger friend.

“Anyway, I think I read somewhere that secretaries were in high demand now,” Jun couldn’t help but add, smiling evilly at the shorter secretary.

~~

“So, to make long story short, I’m in love with you. Do you want to be my boyfriend?”

Nino anxiously waited for his boss’ reply, his whole body trembling, his hands sweating and his heart hammering crazily in his chest.

He had finally done it. The moment his boss had entered the office, Nino, gathering all his courage, had stopped him and had asked what he had been dying to know all this time. What would his boss’ reply be?

“I thought you would never ask. After trying so hard to make you chose me in the auction and to convince your family that our love was true, you were starting to worry me with your silence.”

“Eh?!” the short secretary gaped at his boss, bewildered. “You _what_?”

“I wanted to spend more time with you so I made you buy me in the auction,” his boss repeated slowly, as if he was talking with a child. “In fact, the entire auction thing was my idea. One of my best, I must add.” The older man smiled, beaming at his secretary.

“But you didn’t say anything when we returned to the office,” his boss pouted, disappointed, and shot him a reproachful look. “So, I decided to give you this week to react before asking you out myself.” With those words, Ohno took Nino in his arms and hugged him tightly.

“D-does this m-mean what I think i-it means?” stuttered Nino, his wide, hopeful eyes fixed on Ohno’s smiling face.

Ohno nodded, his smile broadening. He hugged Nino even tighter. “And now that we have cleared up everything…” he whispered, breathy and low, his soft lips grazing the shell of his flustered secretary’s ear, “think about all the fun we are going to have in the office from now on.”

Nino’s eyes widened in shock while his jaw dropped to the floor. _“H-He must be j-joking, right?”_ he asked himself, blushing furiously.

Before he could ask the same question to his boss, the older man proceeded to give him an example of his words, kissing him _thoroughly_.

~~

“I don’t think Nino needs our help to convey his feeling to Ohno anymore, right?” Aiba asked maliciously.

“No, but we can keep spying on them. Maybe he’ll need an ambulance when his boss finally decided to let him breathe,” laughed Jun.

“Nah, I’m sure that Ohno had everything covered,” commented Sho with a broad, evil smile. He put his arms around Aiba’s waist and rested his chin on his shoulder, “He has always excelled at making plans.”


End file.
